Analysts: Sony posts record losses with PS3

Bloomberg reports that Sony has hit record losses during the last six months due to the sub-par market performance of its highly-touted PlayStation 3 game console.

Analysts from 11 separate firms estimate that the company could have lost as much as US$ 630 million in the fourth quarter of last year alone. This means that even if the electronics giant is profiting from every division except gaming, it falls to a deficit because of the huge losses posted.

That means that even if Sony is making a lot of money from its cyber-shot digital cameras, Bravia TV sets and movies such as big-screen monster “Spider-Man 3,” it still faces an uphill climb. The PlayStation 3 is currently ranked at last place in game console sales behind Microsoft Corp’s Xbox 360 and Nintendo’s Wii.

Analysts point to market delays, high price, scarcity of good content and Blu-ray losses as the main factors why the PS3 isn’t even close to breaking even. In fact, other sources say that the company actually loses as much as $250 for every PS3 sold due to the high cost of production.

To date, the Nintendo Wii is outselling the PS3 by a two to one ratio. The Wii sold more than a million units in the US while the PS3 did a little over 500,000. The Xbox 360, which still leads the market in overall sales, has sold more than 700,000 units.

For her part, analyst Hitoshi Kuriyama of Merill Lynch Japan Securities says that there’s bound to be a price cut for the PS3 sooner or later. She predicts a 20 percent mark-down in retail rates, which translates into the PS3 selling at around US$ 480 from the initial listing of about US$600. For the complete figure of the Bloomberg report, follow the “Read” link provided below.

Bloomberg reports that Sony has hit record losses during the last six months due to the sub-par market performance of its highly-touted PlayStation 3 game console.

Analysts from 11 separate firms estimate that the company could have lost as much as US$ 630 million in the fourth quarter of last year alone. This means that even if the electronics giant is profiting from every division except gaming, it falls to a deficit because of the huge losses posted.

That means that even if Sony is making a lot of money from its cyber-shot digital cameras, Bravia TV sets and movies such as big-screen monster “Spider-Man 3,” it still faces an uphill climb. The PlayStation 3 is currently ranked at last place in game console sales behind Microsoft Corp’s Xbox 360 and Nintendo’s Wii.

Analysts point to market delays, high price, scarcity of good content and Blu-ray losses as the main factors why the PS3 isn’t even close to breaking even. In fact, other sources say that the company actually loses as much as $250 for every PS3 sold due to the high cost of production.

To date, the Nintendo Wii is outselling the PS3 by a two to one ratio. The Wii sold more than a million units in the US while the PS3 did a little over 500,000. The Xbox 360, which still leads the market in overall sales, has sold more than 700,000 units.

For her part, analyst Hitoshi Kuriyama of Merill Lynch Japan Securities says that there’s bound to be a price cut for the PS3 sooner or later. She predicts a 20 percent mark-down in retail rates, which translates into the PS3 selling at around US$ 480 from the initial listing of about US$600. For the complete figure of the Bloomberg report, follow the “Read” link provided below.